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'Forth' time lucky for UNESCO World Heritage Site bid?

6 March, 2014 | By Astragal

Those behind the bid to bag UNESCO World Heritage Site status for the Forth Bridge appear to be supremely confident in the structure’s cultural merits

Despite the fact both the Tower of London and Liverpool’s waterfront have been threatened with the loss of World Heritage status due to unsympathetic development work nearby, those behind the Forth Bridge’s bid have decided to forgo a buffer zone, which would be maintained to protect views.

Mark Watson, deputy head of industrial heritage conservation directorate at Historic Scotland said: ‘The bridge will take pretty much anything you throw at it, so for that reason we do not see the need to have a buffer zone that will mollycoddle the bridge. The Forth Bridge is such a powerful thing that it can stand up to almost anything built near it.’ This includes Queensferry Crossing, currently under construction and due to complete in 2016.

However, Watson added: ‘The last three attempts by the UK to inscribe sites on the world heritage list all failed. We are not counting our chickens.’

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